1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of excavating equipment and more particularly to an apparatus and method for preparing an excavator stick for transport from one site to another.
2. Prior Art
Conventional techniques for preparing an excavator stick for transport from one site to another involve a significant amount of labor and time expenditure on part of the operator. The excavator stick must be decoupled from the boom of the excavator manually by several mechanics in a series of steps including removal of the stick cylinder pin and removal of the boom pin (also commonly known as xe2x80x9cstick pinxe2x80x9d). A mechanic must be elevated to boom pin height by a loader, forklift or ladder which is a risky operation in terms of safety. With the mechanic elevated, a sledgehammer is then used to hammer out the boom pin which may lead to damage of the boom pin itself. The stick is then lowered on the ground where it is often flipped on a different side risking damage to the bucket, hydraulic lines and associated hardware.
Occasionally, when the stick cylinder pin is removed, it is jammed into dirt or loose gravel, and debris gets into the bushing, seal, grease-sleeve (in the vacant bucket pin opening) which may lead to significant down time used for cleaning the bushing, seal and sleeve. Also, every time the excavator bucket is engaged and released, the bushing, seal, sleeve and pin are subjected to pitting and grinding abrasive action.
Therefore, the need arises for a novel apparatus and method for preparing an excavator stick for transport which would would eliminate the risk of damage to the excavator stick and associated hardware, reduce significantly labor costs and down time and comply with or exceed current OSHA fall protection safety standards.
xe2x80x9cThe present invention is directed to an apparatus for preparing an excavator stick for transport, the excavator stick having a front portion uncoupled from an excavator bucket, a back portion removably coupled to an excavator boom, and an excavator stick support eye region between the front and back portions, the apparatus comprising a base for accommodating and supporting the excavator stick during transport means for removably coupling the front excavator stick portion to the base means for uncoupling the back excavator stick portion from the excavator boom means for supporting the uncoupled back portion of the excavator stick over the base means for holding the uncoupled back portion of the excavator stick onto the base and means for securing the excavator stick to the base in preparation for transport.xe2x80x9d
These and other aspects of the present invention will become apparent from a review of the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention.